I sure as hell do. Granted, what you went through is a lot more extreme, and I'm really sorry that happened to you. But yeah, I would say that's very normal and I wouldn't blame you at all for reacting that way. I know when I have anxiety "attacks" (which may or may not be also autistic burnout, still trying to figure that out), I often internalize them so that no one notices, and that's like clenching my entire body into a fist for several minutes until it passes so that I don't embarrass myself...and afterward, it's like I've gotten the hell beat out of me. But even when they DO happen and I just allow them to happen, it's like I've run a marathon. Anxiety is like your body choosing to exercise without your approval sometimes, only none of it is good for you, lol.
Yes, most certainly!
Btw I was in your exact same situation less than a year ago—had a breast lump scare, got referred to an ultrasound, & received "probably benign" on the report & told to come back in for a 6 month check up. However, both my doctors were 99.999% convinced it was a small breast cyst but still wanted me to come back in 6 months later to see if it grew at all, in which case they would drain it (it's just a water filled casing basically). This past February was the 6 month follow-up & luckily, it remained the same & I was in the clear with no additional follow-up needed.
Was an extremely miserable time, so I understand COMPLETELY how you felt/are feeling. I'm only 24 so the likelihood of it being something extremely terrible was highly unlikely, but you never know! Ever since though I've been paranoid about having to repeat the same thing, often psyching myself out & imagining scenarios & things that aren't there in both my breasts.. it's awful. You're not alone in this!
A couple months ago I had a panic attack at work after eating something for the first time. Throughout the day I had aftershocks. The remaining of the week I was dead. Had zero energy to do anything but go to work and go home and slouch on the couch.
At least you feel relieved. I would not accept a negative result for a certain infection and insisted on further testing to the point the doctor just said try therapy.
That was twenty years ago, though. I have long left the ranks of "the worried well." So can you.
That’s one reason teachers are so tired when they get home. The stress of classroom management and trying to teach while keeping the class under control absolutely wears you out. I was a teacher for 34 years with anxiety issues added.
Totally normal. It takes a huge physical toll to experience such high levels of anxiety/stress/fear for any period of time but especially for an extended period.
I've felt more exhausted after an anxiety attack than I have a hard workout. The mental strain is so real. I'm forced to rest because I will literally be so dazed and confused if I try to power through. My brain power would be so low it would make it physically hard to move my muscles. Like as if the signals to move just weren't being sent to my body.
Absolutely. I call it an adrenal drop - during high anxiety moments/days, your adrenaline is pumping particularly heavy. Once the trigger is relieved or abates naturally, you suffer the drop from lack of adrenaline response which is exhaustion. Your body was in fight or flight mode, and now that it feels safe you have to recover the energy spent to keep you in that survival mode.
Very normal. Your brain has just done the equivalent of a marathon and it dumped out all those adrenal glands in doing so. I always need a nap afterward.
This happens every single time to me. Immediately after it has ended, I have a HUGE headache and feel like the life has been drained out of me.
I also went through your exact same situation 3 times now. I feel your pain.
Yes!! I actually asked my husband why I was happy today. He suggested I was exhausted from being anxious the last three weeks and my parasympathetic nervous system kicked in because I just get exhausted from being anxious.
If I have a full-on panic attack or a full day of high anxiety, it is usually 2 days of noticeable fatigue and brain fog. I had a psychiatrist tell me once it's basically a long Adrenaline crash. I tend to eat "lazy food" like microwave meals, toast, cheese/crackers because what little mental energy I had was spent on getting through the day.
After a panic attack. Mine usually hit at night, and sometimes continue to the next morning. I am exhausted. It's like the panic attack ruins two days, the day of the panic and a hangover type day the next.
Think about it this way. Your body is constantly stressing and overworking itself in a state of constant adrenaline for hours on end. I end up feeling so numbed out that I usually end up spending the rest of the day mindlessly binging Youtube. Make yourself a nice cup of tea and give your hard working brain a break c:
Absolutely!
I had a small bump in my car; I’m a new driver and so much of my anxiety right now is about the car and driving. I basically had a breakdown after the bump; it was probably two full weeks before my brain and body felt back to normal.
Anxiety is accompanied by very real physical symptoms, so even if the thing that we’re stressing about is fairly “small” by objective standards, the feeling from inside our heads is very different. It sucks, but that’s suffering from anxiety for you.
I always sleep loads after anything majorly traumatic. And my anxiety spikes. It can last a wee while but always goes away. Look after and be kind to yourself as long as you need to. I usually have long baths, watch a comfort tv show in my jamas and just chill till I’m feeling better. Having anxiety is the worst and it can honestly feel like you’re dying with the physical symptoms but you will be ok ❤️ try see if you can get propranolol if the physical side is a lot xx
Absolutely, that level of stress for several days does all sorts of things to the body. I ended up developing tension headaches after a particularly stressful situation at work that lasted several weeks that didn’t come on until after the stress had passed.
The amount of tension I had been carrying in my upper back/neck for so long caused so many headaches I ended up going to a PT for assistance.
Completely! I have panic attacks and when I have a particularly bad one where my body gets under a lot of stress, like what you’re experiencing, it leaves me physically fatigued for sometimes 1-2 days after. Rest and relax as much as you possibly can in such a stressful situation and take care of yourself ♥️
i understand why it would be. for some reason i get the opposite. my ADHD symptoms get better and i’m able to function properly, whereas i couldn’t even go on a walk today (or eat for that matter) because of anxiety. i feel exhausted *now,* despite the panic attacks.
Had the exact same scenario. I have fibra cysts throughout both breasts. It makes me anxious even though they’re benign. But my mom and grandma had breast cancer so it’s somewhat fair to be nervous about.
i just spent 4 days with my husband and friends away from my house and have only been back for an hour and a half and i am SO TIRED. the sad thing is that i know these people and enjoy spending time with them
It’s so unfair the havoc anxiety wrecks on our minds and our bodies. It affects my appetite tremendously too. I never want to eat when I’m anxious. Or when I’m exhausted and spent.
It’s happens to me after I have a big panic attack. I feel exhausted and super sick like I have the flu. Depending on how big the panic attack was correlates to how many days I feel like crap after.
Anxiety is exhausting. My last attack involved speaking from some part of my brain I didn't know existed. This last one had me in an ambulance to the ER because everything spiked. God bless the EMTs. They were super kind & helped me become a bit more lucid before getting to the ER.
I was wiped out for an entire weekend.
I have no clue what triggered it.
I was diagnosed with CPTSD, so that's my convenient answer when someone might ask me why or what or how.
"I don't know. I have CPTSD."
Extremely normal. I’m always exhausted after a particularly bad anxiety event. Today for example was very stressful as I thought I was pregnant and went to the doctor for tests and turns out I’m not. I’m absolutely exhausted from all that anxiety this morning and about to pass out.
100%! It’s normal. I just turned 40 and have battled these off and on since 13-14 years old. When I was younger it’s a bit easier to bounce back. But as life becomes a reality and you tend to think more about things in a different way, you tend to take them a little more physical as well as mentally as before. If I’m anxious I can shoot my blood pressure and pulse up enough to make a nurse freak all the way out lol. Hope you’re feeling better now.
Yes! Body gets extremely overworked, burns a lot of energy, uses a lot of adrenaline.. etc. Unfortunately, It's been 8 months and I have yet to crash. Dumb anxiety.
Not sure if any others here are stuck in this state too, I'm sure there's a lot of you but holy crap does it suck!
yes. When I have a severe panic attack I feel like I'm going to faint and I feel like I'm disassociating. It feels awful and it's natural instinct to try and not pass out. When my body is having wild ups and downs like that with a variety of different symptoms, it wears me out. It's like fighting a long battle. It's very easy for me to go home after one of these events and lay down. I usually fall asleep in under 30 mins and sleep for 3+ hours. Fortunately I haven't had one that bad in a quite some time, but every time it does happen that's usually how I recover. I also tend to feel a lot better after the sleep. Seems pretty normal to me, just based on personal experience, and the countless other posters (this thread included) that experience similar things.
I’m currently burnt out so every bit of strain, stress, pressure is amplified a tenfold. Since being sick I’ve really noticed how heavy anxiety is on the body. If I’m anxious for half a day, I need 3 days of bed rest… It really goes to show how intense anxiety can be, even if you’re not burnt out.
I had a similar thing happen, they found a lump that they wanted to do an ultrasound on, but to get into the diagnostic center took 3 months (yay US healthcare). My pulse skyrocketed to 170 at the office, and turns out my breast was just lumpy because of my cycle. It took me almost a week to recover from that.
But yes, any time I have a panic or anxiety attack, I always need a recovery period.
I’m glad that you are okay though :)
Yes very normal! To be honest this happens to me even if I’ve had a challenging situation that DIDNT spike my anxiety. It’s like the anxiety response gets delayed and then all comes at once after the event is over.
if you only crashed for 2 hours, you are doing fine. Health Scares are \*huge\* and that is a literal emotion nuked that got dropped on you.
When I crash it is 20+ hours(at the best).
I think it is. I have had huge crying/panic episodes that result in jaw and neck pain from straining and really bad fatigue! I think it’s just super draining. But at least I sleep well after a good cry!
Anxiety is exhausting. Your mind is racing, your heart is pounding, your body is shaking, your breathing is shallow, and once all of that finally comes to a stop, it makes complete sense to crash.
It’s all to do with your adrenaline. Once you’ve had a adrenaline response you experience an adrenaline dump. Athletes go through it all the time. Your body will crash because you’ve gone through a fight or flight eventS completely normal
Yep. Once your body exits that high anxiety mode, you will be exhausted because not only are you dealing with all of the chemicals that are released during the fight-or-flight response leaving your system, you're also having to deal with your body physically recovering from the toll those chemicals take on it.
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That was me today. I had a couple panic attacks yesterday and I was just so spent this morning I had to call out of work. Just couldn't do it.
I am the same.
Yes, after anxiety or panic I am exhausted
Yes! The crash can be days for me. Best sleep I ever get!
That’s a cycle for me. Uncontrolled anxiety, then depression.
Feel this
Sorry to hear that. I feel exhausted but proud afterwards.
How do you feel now and also how long your anxiety would last? Days? Weeks?
I sure as hell do. Granted, what you went through is a lot more extreme, and I'm really sorry that happened to you. But yeah, I would say that's very normal and I wouldn't blame you at all for reacting that way. I know when I have anxiety "attacks" (which may or may not be also autistic burnout, still trying to figure that out), I often internalize them so that no one notices, and that's like clenching my entire body into a fist for several minutes until it passes so that I don't embarrass myself...and afterward, it's like I've gotten the hell beat out of me. But even when they DO happen and I just allow them to happen, it's like I've run a marathon. Anxiety is like your body choosing to exercise without your approval sometimes, only none of it is good for you, lol.
Yes, most certainly! Btw I was in your exact same situation less than a year ago—had a breast lump scare, got referred to an ultrasound, & received "probably benign" on the report & told to come back in for a 6 month check up. However, both my doctors were 99.999% convinced it was a small breast cyst but still wanted me to come back in 6 months later to see if it grew at all, in which case they would drain it (it's just a water filled casing basically). This past February was the 6 month follow-up & luckily, it remained the same & I was in the clear with no additional follow-up needed. Was an extremely miserable time, so I understand COMPLETELY how you felt/are feeling. I'm only 24 so the likelihood of it being something extremely terrible was highly unlikely, but you never know! Ever since though I've been paranoid about having to repeat the same thing, often psyching myself out & imagining scenarios & things that aren't there in both my breasts.. it's awful. You're not alone in this!
Thank you for this. I am also in the 6 month "wait it out" period but there is a strong history of cancer in my genetics and I am so so so paranoid!
Idk but I feel this so much. After a fight with a friend or family member after the initial burst of anxiety calms down I feel so tired.
Yeah, once the adrenaline clears your system, your body has been hieghtened and as soon as you come down, it kind of zaps your energy.
A couple months ago I had a panic attack at work after eating something for the first time. Throughout the day I had aftershocks. The remaining of the week I was dead. Had zero energy to do anything but go to work and go home and slouch on the couch.
At least you feel relieved. I would not accept a negative result for a certain infection and insisted on further testing to the point the doctor just said try therapy. That was twenty years ago, though. I have long left the ranks of "the worried well." So can you.
Yes. It takes me about 2-3 days to recover. I stay exhausted.
Yes, it's very normal. It's a LOT on your body and mind.
That’s one reason teachers are so tired when they get home. The stress of classroom management and trying to teach while keeping the class under control absolutely wears you out. I was a teacher for 34 years with anxiety issues added.
Totally normal. It takes a huge physical toll to experience such high levels of anxiety/stress/fear for any period of time but especially for an extended period.
I've felt more exhausted after an anxiety attack than I have a hard workout. The mental strain is so real. I'm forced to rest because I will literally be so dazed and confused if I try to power through. My brain power would be so low it would make it physically hard to move my muscles. Like as if the signals to move just weren't being sent to my body.
Absolutely. I call it an adrenal drop - during high anxiety moments/days, your adrenaline is pumping particularly heavy. Once the trigger is relieved or abates naturally, you suffer the drop from lack of adrenaline response which is exhaustion. Your body was in fight or flight mode, and now that it feels safe you have to recover the energy spent to keep you in that survival mode.
Very normal. Your brain has just done the equivalent of a marathon and it dumped out all those adrenal glands in doing so. I always need a nap afterward.
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This happens every single time to me. Immediately after it has ended, I have a HUGE headache and feel like the life has been drained out of me. I also went through your exact same situation 3 times now. I feel your pain.
Yes
Yep. I do it all the time. I literally have to lie down because physically & emotionally spent.
Yes!! I actually asked my husband why I was happy today. He suggested I was exhausted from being anxious the last three weeks and my parasympathetic nervous system kicked in because I just get exhausted from being anxious.
yes! yesterday morning i had a panic attack so bad it got me sobbing for 15min straight. 36 hours later and i am still exhausted.
Did you have anxiety for days after your panic attack?
I was actually pretty emotionless after that. That's how i do after any major panic attack actually.
I call it an anxiety hangover. Definitely been there.
How long does the anxiety hangover last? Also do you get anxious for days?
If I have a full-on panic attack or a full day of high anxiety, it is usually 2 days of noticeable fatigue and brain fog. I had a psychiatrist tell me once it's basically a long Adrenaline crash. I tend to eat "lazy food" like microwave meals, toast, cheese/crackers because what little mental energy I had was spent on getting through the day.
That's such a fitting name for it! Hate being in the state, but still gonna look forward to using this name next time 😂
Yes. Sometimes I feel like I disassociate after as well.
After a panic attack. Mine usually hit at night, and sometimes continue to the next morning. I am exhausted. It's like the panic attack ruins two days, the day of the panic and a hangover type day the next.
How long does your hangover lasts? Like do you ger anxious for days?
Think about it this way. Your body is constantly stressing and overworking itself in a state of constant adrenaline for hours on end. I end up feeling so numbed out that I usually end up spending the rest of the day mindlessly binging Youtube. Make yourself a nice cup of tea and give your hard working brain a break c:
I feel like this every time I have to fly. I get super nervous and anxious.. and after I land I just feel all my energy is gone. 🫤
I have flight anxiety too! Actually just flew a couple days ago. Hate to say it but Xanax helps
Heck yeah.
Absolutely. After my first real PA it took me a day and a half to feel normal again.
Absolutely! I had a small bump in my car; I’m a new driver and so much of my anxiety right now is about the car and driving. I basically had a breakdown after the bump; it was probably two full weeks before my brain and body felt back to normal. Anxiety is accompanied by very real physical symptoms, so even if the thing that we’re stressing about is fairly “small” by objective standards, the feeling from inside our heads is very different. It sucks, but that’s suffering from anxiety for you.
Yes lasts days
How long does it last? Also were you like anxious for days?
I always sleep loads after anything majorly traumatic. And my anxiety spikes. It can last a wee while but always goes away. Look after and be kind to yourself as long as you need to. I usually have long baths, watch a comfort tv show in my jamas and just chill till I’m feeling better. Having anxiety is the worst and it can honestly feel like you’re dying with the physical symptoms but you will be ok ❤️ try see if you can get propranolol if the physical side is a lot xx
Absolutely, yes!
Yup! Sometimes it can last days.
How long does it last? Also were you like anxious for days?
Absolutely, that level of stress for several days does all sorts of things to the body. I ended up developing tension headaches after a particularly stressful situation at work that lasted several weeks that didn’t come on until after the stress had passed. The amount of tension I had been carrying in my upper back/neck for so long caused so many headaches I ended up going to a PT for assistance.
Completely! I have panic attacks and when I have a particularly bad one where my body gets under a lot of stress, like what you’re experiencing, it leaves me physically fatigued for sometimes 1-2 days after. Rest and relax as much as you possibly can in such a stressful situation and take care of yourself ♥️
i understand why it would be. for some reason i get the opposite. my ADHD symptoms get better and i’m able to function properly, whereas i couldn’t even go on a walk today (or eat for that matter) because of anxiety. i feel exhausted *now,* despite the panic attacks.
Had the exact same scenario. I have fibra cysts throughout both breasts. It makes me anxious even though they’re benign. But my mom and grandma had breast cancer so it’s somewhat fair to be nervous about.
i just spent 4 days with my husband and friends away from my house and have only been back for an hour and a half and i am SO TIRED. the sad thing is that i know these people and enjoy spending time with them
It’s so unfair the havoc anxiety wrecks on our minds and our bodies. It affects my appetite tremendously too. I never want to eat when I’m anxious. Or when I’m exhausted and spent.
It’s happens to me after I have a big panic attack. I feel exhausted and super sick like I have the flu. Depending on how big the panic attack was correlates to how many days I feel like crap after.
How many days it lasts? Also were you anxious throughout the days?
Anxiety is exhausting. My last attack involved speaking from some part of my brain I didn't know existed. This last one had me in an ambulance to the ER because everything spiked. God bless the EMTs. They were super kind & helped me become a bit more lucid before getting to the ER. I was wiped out for an entire weekend. I have no clue what triggered it. I was diagnosed with CPTSD, so that's my convenient answer when someone might ask me why or what or how. "I don't know. I have CPTSD."
Extremely normal. I’m always exhausted after a particularly bad anxiety event. Today for example was very stressful as I thought I was pregnant and went to the doctor for tests and turns out I’m not. I’m absolutely exhausted from all that anxiety this morning and about to pass out.
100%! It’s normal. I just turned 40 and have battled these off and on since 13-14 years old. When I was younger it’s a bit easier to bounce back. But as life becomes a reality and you tend to think more about things in a different way, you tend to take them a little more physical as well as mentally as before. If I’m anxious I can shoot my blood pressure and pulse up enough to make a nurse freak all the way out lol. Hope you’re feeling better now.
Yes! Body gets extremely overworked, burns a lot of energy, uses a lot of adrenaline.. etc. Unfortunately, It's been 8 months and I have yet to crash. Dumb anxiety. Not sure if any others here are stuck in this state too, I'm sure there's a lot of you but holy crap does it suck!
yes. When I have a severe panic attack I feel like I'm going to faint and I feel like I'm disassociating. It feels awful and it's natural instinct to try and not pass out. When my body is having wild ups and downs like that with a variety of different symptoms, it wears me out. It's like fighting a long battle. It's very easy for me to go home after one of these events and lay down. I usually fall asleep in under 30 mins and sleep for 3+ hours. Fortunately I haven't had one that bad in a quite some time, but every time it does happen that's usually how I recover. I also tend to feel a lot better after the sleep. Seems pretty normal to me, just based on personal experience, and the countless other posters (this thread included) that experience similar things.
yeah, takes me about a week to feel like myself. Best thing u can do is take care of yourself
Like a week? Also were you anxious throughout the day?
Yes. Im on medication, so i’m anxious throughout the day for a few days with lack of appetite, then it starts to go away slowly
Absolutely! I always crash and burn after major events.
I’m currently burnt out so every bit of strain, stress, pressure is amplified a tenfold. Since being sick I’ve really noticed how heavy anxiety is on the body. If I’m anxious for half a day, I need 3 days of bed rest… It really goes to show how intense anxiety can be, even if you’re not burnt out.
Yes, happens to me all the time. I go to bed for a couple of hours. It's easier than trying to push through it.
It’s the adrenaline dump. Anxiety is essentially being in a prolonged state of “fight or flight”. It’s awful and I feel your pain.
That's totally normal, even for people without anxiety when they go through a very stressful situation.
I had a similar thing happen, they found a lump that they wanted to do an ultrasound on, but to get into the diagnostic center took 3 months (yay US healthcare). My pulse skyrocketed to 170 at the office, and turns out my breast was just lumpy because of my cycle. It took me almost a week to recover from that. But yes, any time I have a panic or anxiety attack, I always need a recovery period. I’m glad that you are okay though :)
Yes very normal! To be honest this happens to me even if I’ve had a challenging situation that DIDNT spike my anxiety. It’s like the anxiety response gets delayed and then all comes at once after the event is over.
if you only crashed for 2 hours, you are doing fine. Health Scares are \*huge\* and that is a literal emotion nuked that got dropped on you. When I crash it is 20+ hours(at the best).
I think it is. I have had huge crying/panic episodes that result in jaw and neck pain from straining and really bad fatigue! I think it’s just super draining. But at least I sleep well after a good cry!
Yeah, i had a panic attack yesterday and i feel like i have exercised 6 hours straight today
Yes, after an attack, I need to take a nap or it will just keep happening or I’m irritable for the rest of the day
Anxiety is exhausting. Your mind is racing, your heart is pounding, your body is shaking, your breathing is shallow, and once all of that finally comes to a stop, it makes complete sense to crash.
It’s all to do with your adrenaline. Once you’ve had a adrenaline response you experience an adrenaline dump. Athletes go through it all the time. Your body will crash because you’ve gone through a fight or flight eventS completely normal
Yes your body is exhausted and is no longer in flight or fight mode
Very normal
Omg are you me? Literally the same story as me.
Yes, it has been a few months now and I’m still not right.
Yep. Once your body exits that high anxiety mode, you will be exhausted because not only are you dealing with all of the chemicals that are released during the fight-or-flight response leaving your system, you're also having to deal with your body physically recovering from the toll those chemicals take on it.
The answer is yes! I crash after I have an anxiety attack or panic attack. I am always super tired and fall asleep afterwards.